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Whitney Trail To Reopen July 11; Permits Issued Again

By:

Times Staff Report

Staff Writer

Wednesday, July 11, 2018

MAMMOTH LAKES, CA

The Inyo National Forest is planning to re-open the Whitney Portal Road and access to the Mt. Whitney Trailhead at 6:00 pm today. The Shepherd Pass Trail is also re-opening, according to the Inyo National Forest.

The evacuation is also being lifted for the Whitney Portal area, including campgrounds, residents, and the Whitney Portal Store.

The opening is tentative and could change if unexpected fire behavior were to occur forcing the area to remain closed for public safety.

The Eastern Sierra Visitor Center in Lone Pine will begin issuing permits for both day and overnight hikers who have reservations for the Mt. Whitney Trailhead. They will also be re-issuing permits for hikers who were unable to complete their hike in the past few days due to the fire. They plan to remain open until 8:00 pm to assist hikers. The visitor center will be fully staffed and fire information officer will be available to update hikers on the Georges Fire.

In addition, hikers can request night box service by calling the Wilderness Permit Office at 760-873-2483 or 760-873-2573.The Wilderness Permit Office will be open until 7:30 pm to accommodate these requests.

We appreciate your continued patience as we work to re-open and re-issue these permits. In addition, parking at Whitney Portal will be extremely limited. Hikers are highly encouraged to use shuttles and carpools to help alleviate parking congestion.

The Eastern Sierra is a fire-adapted and fire-prone environment and wildfire is a reality here. The Inyo National Forest appreciates the efforts of SoCal Team 3, Cal Fire, the Inyo County Sheriff’s Office, Bishop BLM Field Office, local fire departments, and all other partners who have made significant efforts to help get this area re-opened and their work to safely contain this fire.